From David Bowie's swan song to Beyonce's call to arms, Anohni's war lament to Frank Ocean's return, 2016 was a year of big artists making big statements. These are our picks for the best songs of the year.

Featuring David Bowie’s haunting last rites, a Parisian revolution, an all-powerful Beyoncé, a dancing robot, a weeping Naomi Campbell, a kid from “Stranger Things,” a bunch of sheep in a gym, and more

Popularized by the likes of Boards of Canada in the ‘90s, IDM is marked by tangled robot rhythms and twisted timbres—as well as a surprising amount of tear-jerking melody. Philip Sherburne highlights 15 of the electronic subgenre’s most endearing tracks.

Each entry in the long-running 33 1/3 series finds a writer delving deep into a notable album, teasing out fresh details from beloved classics or making a case for the unexpected along the way. With more than 100 titles to its name at this point, Stephen M. Deusner highlights the collection’s finest moments.